


These Are My Stompin' Grounds

by benjaminrussell



Category: 9-1-1 (TV), 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Eddie Diaz Started At The 126, F/M, M/M, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-07
Updated: 2020-10-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:34:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26878270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/benjaminrussell/pseuds/benjaminrussell
Summary: Eddie was only a few months into the job when almost all of his crew died in an explosion, so he moved across the country and never looked back. At least not until a year or two later, when a call from a friend brings him back to Austin for the first time, son and boyfriend in tow.AKA. Eddie started his probationary period at the 126 and is friends with Judd.AKA. Eddie talking to people headed off the lawsuit and the street fighting.
Relationships: Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV) & Judd Ryder (9-1-1 Lone Star), Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Grace Ryder/Judd Ryder (9-1-1 Lone Star)
Comments: 14
Kudos: 321





	These Are My Stompin' Grounds

**Author's Note:**

> Title from the song Stompin’ Grounds by Reyna Richards.
> 
> Shout out to the 911 discord for helping me finish this!

After the argument with his parents about moving in with them full-time, Eddie started looking for jobs again, and found that the 126 in Austin was looking for a probationary firefighter. Being torn between wanting to stand on his own two feet and also wanting what was best for Chris (which he honestly still wasn’t sure what that was), he decided that a job in Austin could be a good compromise. Admittedly, Austin wasn’t that much closer to El Paso than LA was, but at least they would still be in Texas, and surely that had to count for something, right?

So, he put in his application, had a phone call with the captain a few days later, and then the next weekend took a trip out to meet the man. One interview later and he was walking away with a job offer and, courtesy of the wife of one of the firefighters who he’d run into on the way out of the station, some advice on where to look for a house to rent. Heading back to El Paso, he felt more hopeful than he had in a long time. He just had to break the news to his parents and, more importantly, Chris.

Eddie’s first day at the 126 was fairly uneventful, which after several weeks of driving back and forth across the state to get everything sorted for the move, was almost a relief. It gave him chance to meet everyone (other than Billy Tyson who was apparently on long term medical leave) and learn the basics of how the firehouse operated. He expected it to take a while before the other guys fully accepted him as one of them, but they were friendly enough so that was all he could ask for on his first day. The fact that he’d come from the army instead of straight from college or similar seemed to help – Eddie guessed it counted towards ‘proving himself’ as someone who could be depended on in a dangerous situation.

The first day soon became the first week, and the first week turned into the first month, and Eddie slowly but surely began to integrate into the crew. As the probie he got the majority of the grunt work and a hell of a lot of teasing, but it didn’t seem malicious, so he bore it, shooting back his own jibes once he got to know the others. He got to ride along on more calls, helping out with car accidents, trapped hikers, and of course, fires. There were a few nights out, and one memorable occasion where Judd invited him to his regular poker night which turned out to be a very intense event. He also became very thankful for Chuck’s wife, Colleen, who insisted on looking after Chris alongside their daughter, Mable, once she’d found out Eddie was struggling to balance childcare with his job. She wouldn’t even accept anything in return, making Eddie feel rather guilty for imposing on her hospitality so much. He did make her promise to call him whenever she and Chuck wanted a night to themselves though. Watching Mable occasionally was the least he could do, especially as she and Chris had quickly become friends.

Eddie had been at the 126 just over three months when the explosion happened. He’d suffered mild smoke inhalation on the previous call, so the captain had told him to hang tight at the station; that they had it handled. He busied himself doing some simple maintenance and the next thing he knew, the paramedic team were rushing out, shouting that there’d been an explosion. Then he continued ‘hanging tight’, but with a lot more anxious pacing until they returned a couple of hours later. And Eddie had seen the looks they had on their faces before, in Afghanistan when his fellow soldiers didn’t return from missions. Captain Blake sat him down and broke the news that all of his crew, bar one, were dead. Judd was in the hospital being checked out and was likely to be there for some time – he’d survived purely due to being further away when the building blew. His physical wounds weren’t life-threatening thankfully, but Eddie could only imagine the mental trauma Judd must be suffering on top of that. It was bad enough knowing that the rest of the crew had been killed, never mind witnessing it first-hand. And of course, he and Judd weren’t the only ones affected. Had Grace taken the call? Did Colleen know her husband wasn’t coming home? In fact, most of the crew had families – had anyone told them? All those questions and more were rolling around his brain as he sat staring at the empty space where the fire trucks should have been.

He was still there when Captain Blake returned an unknown amount of time later. She’d spoken to the chief and Eddie was to have a week of paid leave while the brass figured out what to do. Given that the 126 now consisted of one fully qualified firefighter who was in the hospital, a probie, and a man on long term medical leave, the options were limited. He was to go home, talk to a professional if needed, and they’d contact him in due course. That wasn’t Eddie’s current concern though – he was mainly focused on the thought that he was going to have to go and pick Chris up from the Parklands’ and face Colleen, knowing her husband had just died on the job while he was alive and unharmed.

Twenty minutes later, shortly after Eddie’s knock and just as the sun was rising, the Parklands’ front door opened to reveal Colleen with red rimmed eyes and a grief-stricken expression. Clearly, she’d been told about Chuck.

“Oh Eddie,” was all she said before pulling him into a tight hug. He wrapped his arms around her and murmured, “I’m so sorry.” He pretended he couldn’t feel her soft shaking that implied his friend was crying again. He could feel his own eyes prickling too, but forced the tears back, knowing Colleen needed comfort more right now. They stood like that for several minutes before she gently pulled away and then stepped back so he could actually enter the house. He followed her inside, down the hallway to the kitchen, and let her fix him a glass of iced tea, guessing she wanted something to keep her hands occupied rather than from any particular desire for a drink.

Once she’d poured the tea, she turned back to Eddie and with a barely-there crack in her voice, said, “The kids are still asleep. I’ve not told Mable her daddy isn’t coming home yet.” Before Eddie could reply, she continued, “I’m just glad I don’t have to tell Christopher the same thing.”

At a loss for what he could say to that, he reached out and clasped her hand in his, hoping that the gesture would be more meaningful than whatever platitudes he could think of.

“If you need anything at all, just let me know,” He eventually said. “I’m on leave for at least a week, so give me a call anytime.”

“Thank you.” Colleen managed a weak smile, before they both heard the faint but unmistakable sounds of their kids moving around upstairs. Colleen turned to the sink to splash water on her face while Eddie headed towards the bottom of the stairs to distract Chris and Mable so she could have a minute to compose herself.

That afternoon he went to see Judd. He’d dropped Chris at the house of a friend from school, with the dual purpose of giving Eddie time for his visit and to take Chris’ mind off the serious conversation they’d had over breakfast. Eddie couldn’t keep what had happened from his son, so he’d done his best to explain it in an age appropriate way and to reassure him that Eddie himself, while sad, was okay.

Knocking quietly on the door to the hospital room, he had a moment of panic over what he was going to say, but in the end it didn’t matter. As soon as Grace opened the door and saw who it was, she pulled Eddie into his second bone crushing hug of the day.

“Judd’s asleep right now,” She told him in a soft voice when they pulled apart. “He’s pretty banged up, but the doctors say he’ll be fine with time. Physically.” The ‘mentally on the other hand’ went unsaid but they were both thinking it.

Eddie kept Grace company for an hour or so, occasionally sharing quiet conversation but mostly just sitting there, listening to the sounds of the machines that Judd was hooked up to. Eddie had just got back from the vending machine with two cups of coffee when a pained groan alerted them to the fact that Judd was coming to. Grace immediately leant forward and took her husband’s hand, talking to him in a soft voice that Eddie tried not to listen to, instead focusing on the patterns in the floor tiles to give them some vague semblance of privacy.

“Eddie’s here to see you.” Grace straightened up again after a few moments and stepped back, allowing Judd an unrestricted view of his visitor. She accepted one of the cardboard cups, patted Eddie on the shoulder, and then headed to the door.

“I’ll give y’all a minute.” Once the door had closed behind her, Eddie took the seat by the bed and just looked at his friend.

“Hey.”

“Howdy.” Judd’s voice was raspy, and his expression was tight. Eddie couldn’t tell whether Judd was happy to see him or not.

“How are you feeling?” Eddie winced mentally at the stupidity of the question.

“Like shit,” Judd said flatly. Eddie didn’t blame him. He took sip of his coffee and almost scalded his tongue, so set the cup down on the bedside table before realising his mistake. Now he had nothing to do with his hands other than fidget.

“I should’ve been there,” Eddie blurted out after several moments of silence.

“No, you shouldn’t’ve. ‘cuz then you’d likely be as fucking dead as the rest of the crew.” Eddie almost flinched backward at the anger in Judd’s voice.

“I-” Eddie automatically went to protest, part of him convinced that if only he’d been there then he could have done something, _anything_.

“No!” Judd didn’t let him get more than a word out, and then the rest of Eddie’s brain caught up to his mouth. What was he doing, not only arguing with a hospitalised man, but also arguing with one who was most likely right? Eddie briefly lifted his hands to show he wasn’t going to argue any more, then sighed and dropped his head into his hands, elbows resting on his knees.

“Sorry,” He muttered. “I just-” He didn’t really know how to finish the sentence.

“I know.” Judd didn’t sound quite as angry, and Eddie figured maybe he didn’t need to finish it. Judd probably felt just the same. Knowing survivor’s guilt was common and even having suffered through it before didn’t make it any easier or make him feel any better. They fell back into an uneasy silence, and Eddie couldn’t help but feel a little relieved when Grace returned a short while later.

*

By the end of the month, Eddie was out of a job once more. The higher ups had concluded that the 126 couldn’t continue in the state it was in, and while it might get a new crew one day, it wouldn’t be any time soon. And given that there weren’t any vacancies in the surrounding stations, Eddie was back to considering his options and wondering what was best for Chris again. He had a glowing recommendation to back up any application he made, but he still had to decide where he was uprooting his little family to next.

In the end he went back to his original plan from before he left El Paso, and soon found it was his first day in the firehouse again, this time fourteen hundred miles west in LA. He just prayed to anyone who was listening that it wouldn’t end the same way as the first time.

*

A year and a bit later, Eddie was a fully-fledged firefighter and well settled in LA. It hadn’t all gone smoothly, but mostly he and Chris were happy. They had a second family in the 118, and Buck filled a hole in their lives that Eddie had barely known was there. But despite knowing (and being very thankful for) how lucky he was, Eddie hadn’t been able to relax recently. It just seemed like the people he cared about kept getting hurt and there was nothing he could do to stop it. First it had been Shannon’s death, then Buck being crushed by the fire truck, then Buck having an embolism at the party, and then Buck _and_ Chris getting caught up in the tsunami. At points when he was lying awake in the middle of the night unable to sleep, Eddie could swear that the universe was conspiring against Buck ever coming back to work. He could see how much it was wearing on Buck too, but he didn’t know how he could help, especially given that he was struggling to even help Chris with his nightmares. One evening when he’d been dwelling on it all and debating whether he should go along to Lena’s fight club, his phone lit up with a name he never expected to hear from again.

_Judd Ryder_.

“Howdy Diaz, it’s Judd.” The familiar voice rang out when he picked up. “You got time for a conversation?”

“Hey Judd. Yeah, I’m free. What’s up?” Eddie frowned slightly, wondering why Judd was calling him after so long. The other man didn’t sound upset, hinting it wasn’t bad news, but he couldn’t think of a reason for the call. He didn’t have to wait long though for an explanation.

“I know it’s been a minute, but there’s a new crew at the 126 and I’ve been talking to someone, so I figured we were overdue a catchup.”

“It’s good to hear from you.” Eddie relaxed into the sofa and kicked his bare feet up onto the coffee table. “I heard they finally started recruiting again. Well, I got a call from Captain Strand last year asking if I wanted my job back, but I didn’t want to uproot Chris again, so I said no.”

“Cap’s a good man, despite first impressions. I didn’t know he’d reached out to you though.” Judd paused for a moment, but before Eddie could think of what to say to that, he continued. “He put up a memorial board with all the guys’ pictures, right by the entrance.”

“That was good of him.” Eddie hated how awkward he probably sounded, but the mention of their dead friends had dragged his survivor’s guilt right back up from the mental box he’d shoved it into. Objectively he knew that one, he hadn’t really dealt with it; and two, that Judd would know how he felt, but the loudest part of his brain was reminding him that at least Judd had been there. Eddie had just been kicking his heels at the firehouse while their friends died.

“How have you been doing? You still a firefighter?” Judd asked, purposefully moving on the conversation, much to Eddie’s relief.

“Yeah, I ended up in LA at the 118, and I’m no longer a probie.” Eddie forced some amusement into his voice at the last bit, remembering how much teasing he had gotten for it.

“LA? Shit.” Eddie could easily tell where Judd’s mind had gone. So much for moving to lighter topics.

“That means you were dealing with the tsunami, right?”

“Yeah.” Clearly Judd heard something heavy in Eddie’s tone because his own had gone wary when he next spoke.

“You lose someone?”

Eddie huffed out a breath before replying, “No, thank god, but Chris and my boyfriend were right on the pier when it hit.”

Judd gave a low whistle. “Christopher okay? Your man too?”

“Okay as they can be, given what they went through. It’s …difficult.” It went against his instincts to admit he was struggling, but Judd knew trauma and had literally started the conversation by implying he’d been to therapy.

“Maybe a change of scenery would help?” Judd suggested. “Y’all should come visit. I’ll show you the firehouse, introduce the new crew, and we can catch up properly.”

“That sounds great actually. I’ll have to check with my captain to see when I can take time off, but I’ll let you know.” A holiday wouldn’t magically fix anything, but he thought it would do him and Chris both some good. Buck too, if he could convince him to come with them.

“Well we’ll hopefully see you in the not too distant future then.”

“Yeah. Say hi to Grace for me. Goodnight Judd.”

“Of course. Goodnight.”

Eddie dropped his phone on the sofa next to him and smiled. It really was good to hear from his old teammate, especially as it sounded like he was in a much better place than he’d been in when Eddie left Austin.

*

Convincing Buck to join them on their trip turned out to not be difficult at all. Eddie just pulled out his not-so-secret weapon and got Chris to ask. Like Eddie, Buck had been doing everything he could to try and help Chris heal from the trauma, so when he was confronted with a begging eight-year-old, he could hardly say no.

When Eddie spoke to Bobby about taking some time off, he discovered his captain was of the opinion that he was well overdue for a holiday and that Eddie could just name the dates he wanted. A short conversation with Buck and a quick online search for flights later, he had most of the trip planned out, just pending the final booking which he’d do once he got home. It’d actually all lined up strangely well, with all three of them having or being able to take time off work/school. Eddie knew that Buck was raring to go back to work, even if it would just be light duty to start with, but he hoped that this trip would distract him enough that the last stretch of waiting would fly by.

Soon enough Eddie found himself pulling away from their house in the early hours, ready to drive them all to the airport for their flight to Austin. Chris was asleep in the backseat, tiredness from the 2am start winning out over his excitement about the trip, and Buck looked like he was almost asleep in the passenger seat, even though he’d just got in after stowing their small amount of luggage in the trunk. After Eddie had told Judd the dates they’d be visiting, it was later the very same day that he got another call. Colleen had heard about the visit and insisted that they all stayed with her. She reminded him that the 126 were family, and even if Eddie was no longer there, there was no expiry date on family. And there was no way she’d make family stay in a hotel. He’d tried to say that at least they’d pick up a rental car from the airport, but she wouldn’t stand for that either. In her words, meeting them at the airport was just part and parcel of having guests, and anyway they’d get a better deal on a rental in the city proper. Eddie had silently vowed to treat her to a nice dinner out while they were there. It was the least he could in return. Buck’s yawn pulled him out of his thoughts, so Eddie chuckled fondly at the sight of his sleepy boyfriend.

“I’ll wake you when we get to the airport if you wanna nap.”

Buck shook his head and despite a second yawn, insisted, “I’m fine. I’ll nap on the plane.”

*

The first thing Eddie noticed when the three of them walked into the 126’s firehouse was the space. It looked like the entire building had been remodelled to the extent that there were definitely more windows and less walls than he remembered. The second thing he noticed was the memorial board that Judd had mentioned, the faces of all of his fallen first crew smiling down at him. Buck had clearly spotted it too because he laid a hand on Eddie’s shoulder and squeezed gently, giving silent support. Eddie didn’t get too long to dwell on the memories it brought up though as it wasn’t much longer before their arrival was spotted.

“Diaz!” Judd’s voice rang out across the open space, shortly followed by the man himself rounding the corner of the fire truck. He had a wide smile on his face as he approached, holding out a fist to Chris as he got close enough.

“Oh look, your dad’s here too,” He added with a grin. Chris burst out laughing and even Buck chuckled as Eddie rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

“Nice to see you too,” Eddie said drily. Then he turned slightly to glance at Buck.

“Buck, this is Judd. Judd, this is Buck, my boyfriend and fellow firefighter.”

“Nice to meet y’all.” Judd stuck his hand out and Buck immediately shook it.

“Likewise. And I gotta say, it’s an awesome looking house you’ve got here.”

“Knowing what it used to look like, I agree.” Eddie chuckled, remembering the dingy grey box it’d been when he worked there.

“Cap had it all redone when he took over.” Then before any of them could say anything else, there was a loud woof from the direction Judd had come from.

“Dad! There’s a dog!” Chris exclaimed, eyes going wide with excitement.

“This here’s Buttercup, the station mascot,” Judd told them as a very large, very fluffy dog came loping towards them.

“Can I pet him?” Chris asked, aiming the question somewhere between Judd and Eddie, at the same time as Buck breathed Eddie’s name. Eddie nodded at his son as Judd crouched down next to Chris and Buttercup, holding the dog’s collar so he couldn’t knock Chris over. Then Eddie looked at Buck, the corner of his mouth twitching up.

“It’s Bobby you’ve got to convince, not me.” Because clearly Buck had focused on the words ‘station mascot’ and was now picturing a dog at the 118. The sad ‘I know’ he got in reply told him Buck knew how unlikely any of them were to convince Bobby to allow a firehouse dog, but Buck was already moving on, pulling out his phone to snap a photo of Chris with one crutch dangling, his hand buried in Buttercup’s fur. Eddie had been considering doing the same, but he’d just get Buck to send it him later instead.

After a good couple of minutes of Chris and Buck petting Buttercup (Eddie gave him a head rub but mostly stood back and watched), Judd straightened up and cocked his head at Eddie.

“Want a coffee? Cap’s got a fancy espresso machine so you can have just about anything but plain filter coffee basically. There’s about five types of milk too, and I think we’ve got a couple of different juices as well for Christopher.”

“Oh wow, there’s options now!” Judd rolled his eyes at Eddie’s sarcasm, and gestured off behind him.

“C’mon, kitchen’s this way.” Eddie herded his boys after Judd, a task made easier when Buttercup got up and followed, maybe hoping for a treat. The kitchen was already pretty busy when he entered – the several other firefighters already in there cleaning up after lunch having just been joined by three extra people and a dog.

“I’d like y’all to meet Eddie Diaz, our previous probie, as well as his son, Christopher, and his boyfriend, Buck. Eddie and Buck are both firefighters at the 118 in LA,” Judd announced, before going on to introduce his crew. “This is most of my team – Paul, Marjan, and our current probie, Mateo. There’s also TK but he’s on medical leave right now.”

“Nice to meet y’all.” Eddie gave the three of them a warm smile.

“Hey, you’re the firefighter who went viral on YouTube last year for diving off a pier to rescue people from a sinking car, right?” Buck asked Marjan.

“That’s me,” She replied, looking pleased by the recognition. Mateo was frowning slightly as if he was trying to remember something, but none of his crew paid it any attention so Eddie mentally shrugged and tried not to think about the last time the 118 had been on the news.

“I was promised fancy coffee,” He stated as a distraction for himself, and Buck if needed, although a quick glance at his boyfriend made him think that Buck’s mind hadn’t gone where Eddie’s had. Judd gestured to the barista style coffee machine on the counter.

“Hey probie, you wanna do the honours?”

“Huh?” Mateo was broken out of whatever he’d been so focused on, but then processed what had been said to him and turned to the machine.

“What do you want? Latte, cappuccino? Caff, half caff, decaf?”

“Uh, a regular cappuccino with normal milk?” Eddie tried, remembering Judd’s earlier comment.

“Full caff latte with soy for me please,” Buck rattled off at the same time as Judd asked Paul to show Chris what types of juice they had in the fridge.

“Coming right up!” Mateo set the machine going, and then spun around and exclaimed, “I’ve got it!” He jabbed his finger excitedly in Buck and Eddie’s direction.

“That beauty vlogger who had a bug in her face!” Eddie had pretty much forgotten about that call, but the comment brought it all back. It had been a rather easy call out, all things considered. And then not long after, completely overshadowed by Buck being crushed by the ladder truck.

At his colleagues’ blank looks, Mateo went on to explain. “She was livestreaming herself popping a spot, but it turned out a bug had laid an egg in her face and she fell off her chair in shock and broke her collarbone. Then when the first responders turned up, everyone watching was thirsting after them.” He gestured at Buck and Eddie again. Marjan and Paul had matching disgusted expressions, while Judd raised an eyebrow at Mateo.

“You watch beauty vloggers?”

“Oh no, I just saw a reaction video about it.”

“Botfly larvae are no joke,” Buck commented, although he definitely looked amused. “But yeah, that was us.”

“A woman had a bug in her face?” Chris asked in that awed way about something gross that only kids seemed to get.

“Yep, but she had Hen and Chimney to look after her, so she was fine.” Buck smiled down at Chris and ruffled his hair, sending a burst of warmth through Eddie. He’d definitely got lucky there.

The three visitors were partway through their respective drinks when the new captain entered the room. Eddie had never met Captain Strand before, but as he’d told Judd, they had spoken briefly on the phone when the captain had been recruiting to re-staff the 126. At that point however, Eddie had been happily settled in LA so had just thanked the man for the offer and turned him down.

“It’s good to finally meet you, Eddie.” Captain Strand stuck out his hand for Eddie to shake.

“You too.” Eddie ran through introductions again, and then Captain ‘Call me Owen’ Strand asked, “Have you had the tour yet?”

“I got it, Cap.” Judd pushed off the counter he’d been leaning against, before gesturing to the room at large. “Y’all are coming over tomorrow, right? Gotta give our visitors a proper Texas welcome.” Once he got nods or other signs of agreement from everyone, he glanced at Eddie and co.

“C’mon, I’ll show y’all around.”

They saw the dining room, the gym, the living area, the bunks, and even the bathroom, before ending back by the fire trucks and ambulances. At Chris’ pleading and Eddie’s nod of approval, Judd helped Chris up into the driver’s seat of the ladder truck. There were a few moments of comfortable quiet between Buck and Eddie, the two of them just listening to Judd explaining all the different buttons and switches, before Buck commented, “It’s true what they say then.”

“Huh?” Eddie tore himself from his thoughts of how surreal it was being back at the 126 and met his boyfriend’s gaze.

Buck waved his hand at the ladder truck and smirked. “Everything really is bigger in Texas.”

Eddie snorted as Buck raked his gaze over Eddie’s body, making a show of lingering below his belt.

“You’re a menace,” Eddie murmured, crowding Buck against the side of the truck but stopping just shy of actually touching him given where they were.

“You love it.” Buck looked unrepentant, letting the moment stretch out until they were interrupted by Chris calling to them.

“Dad! Bucky! Can we get a picture please?” Eddie stepped back just in time before Judd hopped down from the truck step and held out a hand.

“Gimme your phone and get in there. I’ll take a photo of y’all.”

“Thanks Judd.” Eddie pulled up the camera app and put his phone in Judd’s waiting hand, before climbing into the ladder truck next to Chris. Buck joined them in the passenger seat, and there was a bit of manoeuvring so Chris was in Eddie’s lap and could pretend to be driving before Judd told them all to say cheese and took the picture.

Of course, that was when the alarm went off. Eddie wrapped his arm around Chris’ waist and slid out of the truck, reaching for where Chris’ crutches were propped against the side of the vehicle in one smooth move. “I think that’s our cue to leave.”

Buck appeared from around the other side of the truck, accepting Eddie’s phone from Judd seeing as Eddie was focused on his son.

“I took a few, so hopefully there’s a good one,” Judd said before turning on his heel and hurrying to get ready. “See y’all tomorrow evening!”

Seeing as time was of the essence, Eddie scooped Chris up in his arms and hurried out of the way of the imminently departing vehicles, Buck right on his heels. They tucked themselves against the wall and not long after, the fire trucks and an ambulance peeled out of the firehouse, leaving the place suddenly quiet in their wake.

“What do you say we go get some food?” Buck suggested as they headed back to the rental car, sliding Eddie’s phone into the pocket of Eddie’s jeans without an apparent thought. They’d had a late breakfast when they’d reached Colleen’s which was why none of them had been hungry until now, but they were on holiday, so it didn’t matter. The only point they had to be somewhere at a set time was Judd and Grace’s party, and of course, their flight home.

“Sounds good.”

*

The next day they pulled up outside the Ryder home and all piled out of the rental car. Buck had offered to be the designated driver for the night seeing as he couldn’t drink much while on blood thinners, and Colleen got the passenger seat so she could give directions, while Eddie squeezed in the back with Chris and Mable. Not that either he or Colleen would be drinking lots, given that they were out with their kids, but it was the thought that counted. Eddie grabbed the shopping bag containing two bottles of wine, a six pack of beer, and a selection of juice boxes from the trunk, and then checked that the kids had got out of the car okay. With two other adults there, everyone was already stood waiting on the sidewalk in the time it’d taken Eddie to retrieve the drinks, so as soon as he joined them, Buck locked the car and they headed up the path to the front door. There was a shout of ‘come in!’ at Colleen’s knock, so she pushed the door open and they all filed in. Grace was at the end of the hallway, drying her hands on a tea towel which she dropped on the counter upon seeing the new guests.

“Howdy.” She headed towards them, so Eddie squeezed past the kids and offered the shopping bag to her.

“It’s good to see you again,” Eddie told her warmly.

“And in better circumstances.” Grace took the bag and set it carefully on the floor next to her.

“There’s a bit of all sorts in there, from all of us.” Eddie gestured over his shoulder towards the rest of the group, just as Grace pulled him into a hug.

“Thanks. But more importantly, you need to introduce your man.” She grinned impishly up at Eddie as she pulled away.

“Yeah, yeah, let us get in the house first.” Eddie grinned back, showing he wasn’t actually bothered. Honestly, he was enjoying seeing all of his old friends again and getting to show off Buck to them as well only made it better. Eddie stepped to the side so Colleen could greet Grace too, before she led Chris and Mable further into the house to say hello to Judd and whoever else was here. Once Buck, who’d been at the back of their group, could actually get close enough to offer a handshake, Eddie spoke up.

“Grace, Buck. Buck, Grace.”

“Nice to meet you. You’re a 911 dispatcher, right? My sister’s a dispatcher too.” Eddie had told Buck about his friends before they’d come to Austin, but he hadn’t really expected him to remember everything he’d said. Then again, this was Buck so he shouldn’t be surprised. He always wanted to make the best first impressions.

“That’s right. And you’ve obviously got Chris’ approval from what Judd was saying earlier, so that’s good enough for me.” Grace teased, before ushering them after the others.

“TK and Carlos just arrived too, so come on in and let’s get y’all introduced.”

A while later Eddie found himself sat in the living room with Buck, the 126 crew, and Carlos. Grace, Colleen, and Owen were out back, and Chris and Mable were currently under the dining table playing a game Eddie didn’t know the rules to and suspected were constantly changing.

“Hey, if you’re LAFD, maybe you can settle something for us.” Paul piped up, drawing Eddie’s attention away from the kids.

“Sure?” Buck tilted his head slightly, looking as clueless as to where the conversation was going as Eddie felt.

“Judd says there’s a firefighter in LA who survived having rebar through the head and was back at work within a month. True or false?”

Buck turned to catch Eddie’s eye before bursting out laughing, loud but not completely covering Eddie’s quieter chuckling.

“Chim will love that he’s become an urban legend,” Buck gasped out between bouts of laughter. Eddie nodded his agreement, and then seeing that Buck didn’t look like he was going to stop laughing anytime soon, and that the others were still looking slightly confused, he forced himself to calm down enough to speak.

“True. A guy in our crew in fact. It was before my time, but he’s completely fine and the only sign it even happened is a small scar here.” Eddie pointed to roughly the point where Chimney’s scar was on his own forehead.

“Ha! Told you!” Judd crowed, jostling Marjan who was sat next to him in his excitement.

“Responding to that call was something else,” Buck commented when he finally calmed down. Talking about the accident itself had the potential to bring down the mood of the party, but he immediately moved on before that could happen.

“Here, let me show you the welcome back to work cake.” He already had his phone in his hand, scrolling rapidly back through his photos to find the ones he was looking for. Eddie had seen the pictures before, when the conversation on a long shift had turned to scars, but he was still impressed by how much the cake looked like their friend. Once he’d pulled up a shot of the cake, Buck passed his phone around the loose circle of firefighters (and police officer), grinning widely at everyone’s expressions upon seeing the picture. Eddie took the chance to pull his own phone out and messaged the 118’s group chat.

**Eddie:** @ _Chimney ur famous_

**Chimney:** _??_

**Eddie:** _just been asked to confirm or deny if a firefighter in la survived rebar through the head_

**Eddie:** _so bucks showing them pics of ur cake_

**Chimney:** _My life is now complete_

**Hen:** _omg_ 😂

Buck leant against Eddie, peering down to see what he was typing. Even while mostly focused on the text exchange, Eddie still felt warm at the feeling of Buck pressed against him with a hand on Eddie’s thigh just because he could.

“That’s insane!” Mateo exclaimed, drawing their attention back to the others’ reactions.

“Please don’t get me a cake like that when I come back to work.” TK pleaded with his colleagues as he passed Buck’s phone along to Carlos.

“A cake of a gunshot wound wouldn’t be quite as impressive admittedly.” Paul was clearly confident that TK wouldn’t take the teasing badly if the easy way he said it was anything to go by.

“I’d be happy with a cake of your abs.” Carlos nudged TK and gave him a cheeky grin, prompting another round of laughter and a wolf whistle from Marjan. The camaraderie between the Texas first responders reminded Eddie of what they had at the 118, and he was happy that Judd had been able to move on enough to allow himself that from a new crew.

Now if only Eddie could feel that settled again.

*

Later in the week, they were back at Judd and Grace’s house again for a barbecue. This time most of the 126 crew were working (other than Judd who had the evening off, and TK who was still on medical leave), and Colleen was out at a friend’s ranch for Mable’s weekly riding lesson, however Captain Blake had been able it. With less people the atmosphere was more chilled but no less enjoyable.

Eddie was just debating whether to get up and help himself to another burger when he realised it’d been a little while since he’d seen Chris. He wasn’t especially worried given where they were, but he decided to go and check on his son anyway just in case he needed help with something. He glanced over at where Buck was having an animated conversation with Carlos, who’d just arrived after a shift, and then headed inside to look for Chris.

“That sounds pretty scary.” Eddie heard TK speak as he approached the living room.

“It was, but Bucky was there so I knew it would be okay,” Chris replied, voice quiet but confident. Eddie slowed to a stop just outside the room, in earshot but out of sight, not wanting to interrupt. They had to be talking about the tsunami and the fact that Chris was doing so with someone he’d only recently met no less, could only be a good thing.

“And then afterwards, I had Bucky AND dad, and dad always makes the bad dreams go away.”

Eddie suddenly felt like he’d been sucker punched.

“My dad helped me when I was having a bad time too,” TK said, continuing the conversation unaware of Eddie having a dramatic realisation on the other side of the wall.

“Buck doesn’t have a dad to make it better.” Chris sounded more upset at that fact than anything else, almost spurring Eddie into the room despite his racing mind.

“He’s got you and your dad instead though, and I’m sure you’re doing a great job.”

There was a moment of quiet, and then Chris piped up again, sounding happier and more determined this time.

“I’m going to give him a hug.”

“You do that.” The fondness was evident in TK’s tone even without seeing his expression, but Eddie wasn’t surprised. Chris charmed everyone he met. Chris’ slow footsteps headed out of the other living room door, and then a few moments later, Eddie heard TK stand up too. Eddie shook himself and made it look like he hadn’t just been standing there, meeting the other man in the doorway.

“Oh hey.” TK fiddled with the drawstring of his hoodie as he spoke, voice low but earnest.

“I just had a heavy conversation with Chris about the tsunami, but it sounds like you’re doing a really good job helping him with the trauma. I thought you should know.” Then he patted Eddie on the shoulder and continued past him, heading for the kitchen.

“Thanks,” Eddie called out belatedly. He let out a slow exhale and rested his head back against the doorframe, glad no-one else was currently nearby because he definitely needed a moment. He’d been struggling so much with feeling like he was failing his son; like he should be doing more to help, but just a few simple words from Chris had shoved it right in his face that he _was_ helping.

He must had been dwelling on the realisation that shouldn’t have been as difficult to wrap his head around as Eddie’s brain had made it, for longer than he thought because he was jolted back to reality by approaching footsteps. He hastily pulled himself back to some semblance of normality and turned towards the noise, hoping whoever it was hadn’t noticed his little freak out. He was met by Buck’s concerned expression however, his boyfriend clearly seeing through Eddie’s pasted on smile. Or maybe he’d just seen Eddie frozen in the doorway.

“You alright?”

“I’m good.” Eddie thought he probably sounded unsteady and not very convincing, but he followed it up with an explanation before Buck could question it. “I just had a realisation.”

Buck stayed quiet, letting Eddie take his time, and just settled a hand on Eddie’s hip, grounding him.

“I’ve been struggling,” Eddie admitted out loud for the first time. He held his hand up as Buck opened his mouth, probably to protest that he should have said something earlier.

“Feeling like I was failing you and Chris by not doing enough to help. But I just overheard Chris talking to TK about the tsunami, and the way he said I make the nightmares go away… It was just so matter of fact. I guess I’d forgotten how much someone just being there can help.” Eddie knew he was rambling, and wasn’t certain it all fully made sense, but Buck seemed to see through it to the truth that Eddie was trying to share. He wrapped Eddie up in his arms and hugged him tightly, murmuring against the side of Eddie’s neck.

“Never doubt it. You’ve been so supportive of both me and Chris, and I don’t want to think how it would have turned out if I hadn’t had you by my side this entire time.” Buck pulled back, just enough so he could look Eddie in the eye.

“Maybe you can’t magically fix everything, but you’ve been there for every nightmare, every panic attack. No-one could ask for more.” He leant in again, this time to press a soft, chaste kiss to Eddie’s lips. Eddie felt like he’d had the wind knocked out of him again. Not only did his son have that utmost faith in him, but Buck did too. A part of him had known that already, but it was only here in Judd and Grace’s hallway that it was really sinking in.

“Thank you.” The words were barely more than a breath, but they were close enough together that Buck could hear them easily. He pressed another feather light kiss against Eddie’s lips.

“You need more time, or should we re-join the party?”

Eddie breathed in deeply, held the breath for a few seconds, and released it, before nodding. He squeezed where he still had his arms around Buck’s waist, and then let go slowly.

“Yeah. Let’s go.” Buck drew back, gave Eddie a small reassuring smile, and then followed him back outside.

*

On their penultimate night in Austin, the 126 firefighters took Buck and Eddie out to their favourite bar. Colleen had offered to look after Chris so they could have a night out, insisting that Buck had to go there at least once while he was in Texas. The night started with the Austin crew sharing stories about some of their callouts from the day, with Buck and Eddie occasionally jumping in with similar stories from LA, and then as often happened when they got together with other first responders, it moved on to talking about the most ridiculous calls they’d attended.

“How’s Billy doing?” Eddie asked when Judd got back with their next round after that.

“Ain’t that a story and a half.” Between Judd’s cryptic comment and the look TK and Marjan shared, it was obvious something had gone down with the other firefighter.

“He’s cancer free and took over as Captain of the 121 a bit back, but he was pissed when he didn’t get picked to rebuild the 126.” Judd continued, before taking a long drink of his beer.

“And...?” Eddie waited for further explanation because clearly more had happened than just Billy being annoyed.

“Then I made the mistake of inviting Captain Strand to poker night with him.”

Eddie winced, immediately knowing that Billy wouldn’t have liked an ‘outsider’ taking over, especially with all the changes Owen had made, and that putting them together would never end well.

“Poker night?” Buck tilted his head slightly, looking to Eddie for a reason why that was such a mistake.

“Judd’s poker nights are a bit more intense than the times we’ve played a few hands at the station. I went once and then decided once was more than enough. So probably the worst situation to introduce them in.”

“If Eddie who’s been out of state for over a year knows introducing the two of them was a bad idea, then what on earth were you thinking?” Paul asked, raising an eyebrow at Judd.

“I _wasn’t_ thinking.” Judd tried to cover his embarrassment by taking another drink, so Eddie looked at the other firefighters.

“What happened?”

“Far as I can tell, my dad took Billy’s money, rubbed him the wrong way, and then invited him to the firehouse to show off,” TK said drily.

“Then Billy tried to get Cap put on desk duty, which would have led to him taking over and us out of a job,” Marjan continued, understandably not looking impressed.

“But then they went golfing in a storm and Billy got hit by lightning, so Cap had to carry him all the way back to the clubhouse so he could get help!” Mateo took up the story, waving his hands around to illustrate the events. Eddie privately thought that he might be feeling the effects of the beer already, but if he was having fun then who was Eddie to judge?

“He’s more or less fine, and I think- hope?- that they’ve come to a truce now,” Paul finished off, the tale going full circle around the table.

“Here’s hoping!” Eddie raised his glass, wishing that his friends (old and new) would get to keep the capable, supportive captain that Owen had shown himself to be.

A little after that, the music kicked up a notch and people began spilling out onto the dance floor and arranging themselves into rough lines.

“C’mon Eddie, it’s time to show your man what he’s missing out on.” Eddie rolled his eyes at the teasing from Judd, but willingly enough allowed himself to be pulled onto the dance floor. He joined the end of the line next to Mateo, shooting Buck a small grin even if he was suddenly feeling a little self-conscious. He’d danced like this many times before, but this was the first time he was dancing in front of Buck. Or at least dancing that wasn’t just dancing around the kitchen as Buck cooked. The next song started up, and Eddie let himself relax into the music, feeling the muscle memory of the standard moves come right back even though it’d been quite some time since he’d last line danced. He focused on moving in time with the beat and his friends and didn’t look at his boyfriend again until the song ended. When he did, it was to see Buck looking fondly impressed.

“I didn’t know you could dance like that,” Buck commented as Eddie returned to their table to check in with him and to gulp down some of his drink. Eddie shrugged deprecatingly.

“It’s a Texas thing.”

“Here I was thinking your dancing was limited to-” Buck did a little shimmy, in what Eddie figured was meant to be a bad impression of him dancing to the radio. Eddie nudged Buck with his shoulder, mainly to stop the impression before it turned into dad dancing or something more embarrassing.

“I can teach you if you want?”

Judd returned to also have a drink, just in time to overhear Eddie’s offer.

“Go on, I’ll watch the table.”

“Sure, okay.” Buck reached for Eddie’s hand and pulled him onto the dancefloor, into the recently vacated space next to Mateo.

“Just don’t be upset if I’m better than you.” Buck grinned widely, already bouncing to the beat even as he teased Eddie.

“Just follow my lead.” Eddie rolled his eyes, but honestly, he wouldn’t give up the playful banter they shared for the world. He took a moment to watch the other dancers and to get into the swing of the music, and then joined back in, calling out simple instructions to Buck as he went. It took the younger man a few repeats to get the idea, but soon he was dancing along enthusiastically with the rest of them. Sure, maybe it wasn’t as smooth or polished as it could be, but it was pretty good for a first time. Eddie couldn’t help himself when the song finished and pulled Buck down by the neck so he could give him a messy kiss quickly before the next song began.

“Think we could get the 118 to do this?” Buck asked, beaming at Eddie both because of the joyful atmosphere and of course the kiss.

“I think I’d never hear the end of it if you suggested it.” Eddie laughed, releasing Buck back into the line ready for the next dance.

Several songs later, the group had drifted back to the table in ones and twos, leaving just Eddie and Buck still up on the dancefloor. Buck, in his true golden retriever form, seemed like he could keep going for hours, but Eddie was beginning to tire. This definitely counted as his cardio for the day, especially after an afternoon of chasing the kids (and Buck) around the park. He headed back to the others, unsurprised when Buck was just a step behind him.

“So, how’d you enjoy your first line dance?” Marjan asked, looking just as flushed as the rest of them, whether or not they’d been drinking.

“It was great!” Buck’s enthusiasm was boundless, but even so, Eddie was glad to see that he was having a good time. “We normally do karaoke on team night outs, so this was a nice change.”

“We should do karaoke some time too!” Mateo piped up, looking around at his teammates hopefully.

“Yeah, count me out of that.” Judd crossed his arms, immediately shaking his head.

“Aww, c’mon Judd. Live a little, and all that!” Marjan snickered.

“I’d be down for karaoke.” Paul looked right at Judd, expression saying he was throwing out a challenge.

“What if I could convince my dad to join in too?” TK cocked his head at Judd, playing the ‘watch the captain embarrass himself’ card. Eddie figured that was probably quite a draw, knowing it certainly would be at the 118, but also from his position further around the table from Judd, he could see TK’s crossed fingers behind his back. Either it wouldn’t take much effort to convince Owen to go, or he was actually a good singer. Maybe even both. Eddie wasn’t going to spoil the fun for the other crew though. Actually, if they did end up going, maybe he could get one of them to send him a video of Judd singing. He was sure it’d be good for a laugh.

“Just have a couple of beers beforehand, maybe some tequila.” Eddie suggested slyly. “Works for me.” He could feel Buck’s gaze on the side of his head, knowing he would have picked up on the implication that Eddie got up to sing on a regular basis. While he had joined in the odd time, he didn’t often do so, preferring just to watch his friends sing. Chimney and Maddie especially were always happy to get up and sing if no-one else was.

“Unless you’re too scared, of course.” Literally everyone knew how transparent the taunt was, but it still had the desired effect.

“Fuck you, Diaz.” Judd pretended to take offence, but he was still grinning, so it wasn’t especially believable.

“Thought that was my job.” Eddie was extremely glad he hadn’t just taken a sip of his drink, because otherwise he surely would have spat beer over the table at Buck’s quiet comment. He was also thankful for the background noise in the bar meaning that no-one else had heard the joke. The smack he gave to Buck’s hip just set Buck off laughing, but luckily the others were all too focused on Judd instead. Judd who looked around at his friends’ pleading expressions, and then sighed, throwing his hands up in resignation.

“Fine. I’ll do it, but only if you get Cap to join in too.” The table burst into cheers, conveniently covering Buck leaning in to whisper in Eddie’s ear again.

“I see what you did there.” Eddie turned his head just enough to catch Buck’s eye, and then smirked at him, following it up with a quick peck to the lips. He didn’t think he’d need to convince his boyfriend to keep quiet, but if he did, he was more than happy to use all the tools in his arsenal to achieve that, including making Buck’s bad joke into a promise. If that meant a night of adult fun once they were home, then he was pretty certain neither of them would be complaining.

*

The morning of the day Eddie, Buck, and Chris were due to head back to LA, Judd dropped by Colleen’s house to say goodbye. Chris and Mable were watching cartoons in the front room, leaving the adults to have a leisurely cup of coffee around the breakfast bar in the kitchen.

“Thank you for inviting us, Judd,” Eddie said when there was a lull in the conversation, wanting to let Judd know his idea had been a good one and knowing that if he left it until they got home, he’d likely put it off until he forgot about it.

“Don’t mention it. I just hope y’all had a good time.” Judd glanced between Eddie and Buck.

“Oh yeah, it’s been a great week!” Buck looked noticeably lighter (at least to Eddie’s experienced eye) compared to the week before, showing Eddie that he’d been correct that a distraction would help take Buck’s mind off his work situation. While Eddie didn’t think that Buck would be completely satisfied until he was back on full duty at the 118, Eddie was glad that he’d been able to facilitate at least this brief respite.

“You were right about the change of scenery. It was just what I needed, and I know Chris has enjoyed himself too.” Eddie gave Judd a slight smile, hoping the other man would pick up on the implication behind his words, as while Eddie was working on being better about talking about his feelings, he wasn’t ready to do so during a casual chat over coffee. Judd shot him a knowing look in return but kept the conversation light.

“We’ve loved having y’all here.”

“Just don’t leave it so long next time,” Colleen added teasingly, whilst nudging the tray of cookies closer to Eddie pointedly. Eddie followed the unspoken request and took a cookie, not protesting despite knowing he shouldn’t eat too many because they were just that good.

“And if any of you ever want to visit LA, just give us a shout.” Buck offered easily, knowing without asking that Eddie would be okay with it. Eddie nodded in agreement around a mouthful of cookie, vowing to keep in contact with Judd, Colleen, and the others, even if he expected it to be a while before he saw any of them again. It wouldn’t likely be as easy to organise the next trip as it had been this one, but a phone call would be a lot more doable.

“We may well take you up on that at some point.” Judd then pushed himself back from the table and stood up. “Well I best be getting off, ‘fore I’m late to work.”

“Have a good shift!” Buck said as the rest of them got to their feet too.

“I promise I won’t let it go so long without us talking this time.” Eddie let himself be pulled into a big hug by Judd, clapping him on the back before stepping back.

“I hope y’all have a good flight, and I look forward to seeing y’all again soon.” Judd shook Buck’s hand, before Colleen showed him out, leaving Eddie and Buck alone. Eddie tugged Buck in for a slow, tender kiss, and then sighed.

“C’mon, we better go make sure everything’s packed.”

*

A couple of weeks later, Eddie got a WhatsApp notification from TK out of the blue. Pulling open the chat, he saw it was a video and so was already grinning when he hit play. Sure enough, it was a clip of Judd doing karaoke to Old Town Road. He was onstage with Marjan, who was performing the rapping parts while Judd stuck to singing. Despite his protestations at the line dancing bar, he looked to be having a good time. Eddie let the clip play through to the end, and then sent back a quick message.

**Eddie:** _tell him hes a natural XD_


End file.
